Christian Widows Can’t Wait for Washington: 

Equipping the Persecuted Feeds 170 in Benue as as Aid Pact Lags

By Mike Odeh James

(MAKURDI) — While a $2.1 billion U.S. aid pact aimed at Nigeria’s Christians has yet to reach Benue’s camps, an American charity is feeding Christian widows there.

Equipping The Persecuted (ETP) delivered food to 170 Christian widows and displaced women across four Benue communities between October 27 and 31. It also paid hospital bills for two elderly women with severe tuberculosis.

The interventions by the U.S.-based humanitarian organization, led by Executive Director Judd Saul, covered four sites: Obagaji in Agatu County, Akpachi in Otukpo County, the Daudu 2 Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) Camp in Guma County and the IDP mega camp on the outskirts of Makurdi, the state capital.

Washington’s Promise

The timing is pointed. In December 2025, the United States signed a five-year health agreement with Nigeria tied to the protection of Christians. Washington committed nearly $2.1 billion to programs targeting HIV, tuberculosis, malaria and polio, as well as maternal and child health. About $200 million was set aside for Christian facilities. The U.S. said it negotiated the deal in the context of Nigerian reforms aimed at protecting Christian communities from violence. The grant funding is scheduled to run from April 2026 to December 2030.

It was the first major bilateral health deal since the Trump administration dismantled the U.S. Agency for International Development. Yet the deal’s future is clouded. In July, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a measure to halt aid to Nigeria in the next fiscal year over anti-Christian violence. Representatives Riley Moore of West Virginia and Jeff Steube of Florida led the effort.

Four Communities in Five Days

In Obagaji, 50 Christian widows received 30 bags of cassava and maize on October 27. Their families were hit by attacks attributed to the Fulani Ethnic Militia (FEM). Those attacks have left many women in Agatu widowed and struggling to feed their children.

On October 28, ETP distributed rice to 20 Christian widows in Akpachi, in the Ugboju District. The women lost their husbands to Fulani Terrorists over the past five years, and their livelihoods with them.

The Akpachi distribution followed an earlier ETP intervention this year that provided food and cash to the community. Villagers then reported that some affected families had been left out of that round, so Saul approved further support to reach them.

The traditional ruler of Akpachi, His Royal Highness Udenyi Alechenu Samuel, thanked ETP and Saul for standing with his community.

At Daudu 2 IDP Camp, ETP distributed 50 bags of rice on October 31 to vulnerable Christian women, including elderly widows, pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers. It was the organization’s fourth intervention at the camp since January 2026. Earlier deliveries included food, shoes, toiletries and other essentials.

According to camp management, Daudu 2 holds more than 15,000 displaced persons. Many face persistent food shortages, inadequate shelter and limited access to basic necessities.

The same day, another 50 widows received rice at the Makurdi IDP mega camp. Some beneficiaries have spent more than eight years in displacement since Fulani Terrorists destroyed their communities.

“I have not eaten rice for a very long time. Even eating normal food other than rice is like a luxury from heaven, or manna from heaven,” said Torkwasi Terwase, 30, a mother of two whose husband was killed by terrorists. She thanked ETP and Saul for their generosity.

Another beneficiary, Lubem John, said the assistance came at the right time and would help families struggling with hunger.

Tuberculosis in the Camp

Tuberculosis is one of the four diseases named in the Washington agreement. At the Makurdi mega camp, two elderly Christian women with severe tuberculosis could not wait for that money to arrive.

Camp management asked for help, and Saul approved it. The women were taken to hospital, and ETP covered their immediate treatment costs.

Displacement Crisis Measured in Hundreds of Thousands

The numbers dwarf what any single charity can carry. The International Organization for Migration’s June 2024 tracking counted 500,182 displaced persons in Benue, about 38 percent of the North Central region’s total. Nationally, stakeholders at a UN forum this year cited 3.7 million displaced Nigerians.

Even those figures understate the crisis. Many displaced families never register, living with relatives far from their ancestral homes.

International relief has thinned. In April 2025, the UN humanitarian office announced it would scale back operations in Nigeria over a nearly $60 million funding shortfall, worsening food security in Benue’s camps.

‘Victims Must Be Taken Care Of’

“The Executive Director of ETP, Judd Saul, has made it clear that victims of Fulani Ethnic Militia attacks must be rehabilitated and taken care of, whether through medical attention, food assistance or shelter,” according to a staffer for ETP, that handles field interventions in Benue.

“Since January 2026, this organization has carried out humanitarian interventions in Agatu, Apa, Ukum, Guma, Gwer West and Otukpo, all in Benue State,” he said. “Widows, orphans, children and elderly people have benefited, and ETP remains committed to ensuring victims receive the assistance they need.”

At Daudu 2 alone, more than 15,000 people still need far more than any one delivery can supply. Washington’s billions remain a promise on paper. In the camps, the rice arrived last week.

Mike Odeh James reports for TruthNigeria. He led ETP’s field distribution team for this intervention. 

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